California Healthcare CEOs Win Innovation Awards

George Carpenter, CEO of WorkWell Systems, Inc. took home the top award -- the Platinum Abby -- at Wednesdays Sixth Annual Innovations in HealthcareSM Event and Awards Ceremony, on June 16, presented by the Adaptive Business Leaders (ABL) Organization, a membership organization for CEOs and Presidents of healthcare and technology firms. Dirk Soenksen, Founder and CEO of Aperio Technologies, Inc. took home the Gold Abby Award, while Loren Shook, CEO of Silverado Senior Living, teamed with Yulun Wang, Ph.D., CEO of InTouch Health, took home the Silver Abby Award. Leonard Schaeffer, Chairman and CEO of WellPoint, received the first-ever Leadership in Innovation" Award.

Orange, CA (PRWEB) June 23, 2004 -- George Carpenter, CEO of WorkWell Systems, Inc. took home the top award -- the Platinum Abby -- at Wednesdays Sixth Annual Innovations in HealthcareSM Event and Awards Ceremony, on June 16, presented by the Adaptive Business Leaders (ABL) Organization, a membership organization for CEOs and Presidents of healthcare and technology firms.

Dirk Soenksen, Founder and CEO of Aperio Technologies, Inc. took home the Gold Abby Award, while Loren Shook, CEO of Silverado Senior Living, teamed with Yulun Wang, Ph.D., CEO of InTouch Health, took home the Silver Abby Award.

The event was also highlighted by Leonard Schaeffer, Chairman and CEO of WellPoint, receiving the first-ever Leadership in Innovation" Award. Schaeffer keynoted the afternoon program with a spirited address on Leadership & Innovation."

ABLs Innovations in HealthcareSM ABBY Award was established to honor companies which best exemplify innovative approaches to providing or enabling the timely delivery of quality, cost-effective healthcare," noted ABL President Mimi Grant. Approximately 120 attendees -- executives and business leaders from healthcare, life science and venture capital industries -- listened to presentations by the nine Abby Award nominees and then voted for the person/company they believed should receive the Innovation in Healthcare (ABBY) Award. The nominees were selected earlier by ABL's Technology Advisory Board from an array of organizations nominated for their innovative medical products, systems, processes and services.

Carpenter and WorkWell Systems, of Aliso Viejo, California, were recognized for pioneering new ways to prevent 80-90% of workers compensation costs -- harnessed to an innovative business model: functional abilities testing to match work and workers in pre-hire and post-injury settings, thereby cutting up to 90% of first-year workers comp claims, and reducing lost time days" due to workers comp by up to 80% (85% at Alcoa).

Soenksen and Aperio, of Vista, CA, were honored with the Gold Abby Award for developing the first practical method for rapidly digitizing entire microscope slides in combination with software to view and analyze virtual slides. Aperios patented ScanScope® is the enabling technology for pathology PACS (picture archiving and communication systems) and the simultaneous review of specimens internationally, when time is a matter of life and death.

Silverado, of San Juan Capistrano, and InTouch, of Goleta, were honored with the Silver Abby Award for jointly developing a new modality that overcomes geographic barriers, by enabling someone to be remotely present via a robot. In fact, Yulun Wang attended" Wednesdays event from Japan, using the "Companion" robot via an Internet connection.

The remaining ABBY award nominees were: Applied Molecular Evolution, William Huse, M.D., Ph.D., CEO, of San Diego; CardioDynamics, Michael Perry, CEO, of San Diego; DestinationRx, Michael Cho, CEO, of Los Angeles; Los Angeles Free Clinic, Abbe Land, CEO, of Los Angeles; RelayHealth Corporation, Giovanni Colella, M.D., CEO, of Emeryville; and Resolution Health, Harry Soza, Founder, of San Jose.

About ABL Organization
For over 21 years, the ABL Organization (originally named SO/CAL/TEN) has facilitated forums and leveraged connections enabling the continuing development of healthcare and technology chief executives. Through focused, confidential, monthly Round Tables and regularly scheduled Conferences, Members help each other capitalize on market trends and generally assure they are well positioned for corporate and personal success. More information on ABL Organization is available at http://www.abl.org/.

About Innovations in HealthcareSM Awards and Event
The Sixth Annual Innovations in HealthcareSM Awards and Event was held Wednesday, June 16, 2004, at The Sutton Place Hotel in Newport Beach, California. It was open to ABL Members, as well as senior executives of therapeutic, diagnostic, medical device and healthcare payers, providers, information and services firms.

About WorkWell Systems, Inc.s Award-Winning Innovation
WorkWell Systems provides employers with an integrated set of Internet-based data management tools that report, track and optimize hiring of qualified workers and management of return-to-work programs inside the enterprise. WorkWell also has a nationwide network of rehabilitation professionals who are specifically trained to deliver hands-on injury prevention and rehab services. For physical and occupational therapy providers, WorkWell offers a comprehensive suite of products and services based upon the Isernhagen Work Systems (IWS) standard of workplace analysis.

About Aperio Technologies Award-Winning Innovation
Aperios ScanScope line-scanning instrument rapidly digitizes entire microscope slides at diagnostic resolution -- 20 times faster, with better image quality and at half the cost of competitive systems. In conjunction with proprietary software for viewing and analyzing virtual slides, including via the Internet, Aperio is the leader in virtual microscopy. Given the inevitability of the future digitization of pathology, Aperio is focused on integrating its virtual microscopy products into existing healthcare information management systems such as PACS, providing pathologists with the same productivity benefits realized by radiology PACS, currently a $1 billion annual market. Aperio's "home run" is automating pattern recognition in an estimated 200 million histology slides prepared annually.

About Silverado Senior Livings and InTouch Healths Award-Winning Innovation
Utilizing this robot, clinical experts can monitor and assess a patients situation, meet with other clinical staff and/or patients families and provide consultation and clinical feedback for immediate care planning or intervention -- without leaving their office. Operations experts can remotely meet with facility administrators and staff to provide assistance and training to immediately impact the positive operations of a facility. The InTouch Care Stations" can be installed anywhere there is an Internet connection and are currently in use at Silverados corporate and regional office, physicians clinical offices and in families homes.